The Truth About Monta Ellis' Ankle and the Start of Moped-Gate

So now we know how Golden State Warriors guard Monta Ellis hurt his ankle.

The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting, citing a source close to the team, he hurt it not by playing basketball, but by riding a moped last month.

So now because of his moped accident, Ellis will miss at least two more months of the season and put a damper on what should have been his first season as the face of the franchise.

The Warriors have yet to decide whether they will discipline the 22-year-old guard. Even though the Warriors could actually terminate his contract—moped-riding is prohibited in the uniform player contract—such an act would be a form of franchise suicide.

A bigtime fine or suspension could be in the works, but Warriors VP Chris Mullin has yet to state publicly what his intentions are.

What makes the most sense is for the franchise to do nothing at all. It has been a summer and now fall of public-relations hell, in some respects. Baron Davis bailed on the team and city where he was basically idolized, and now the player who is stepping in for Davis as the franchise face lies about an injury.

Honestly, if the Warriors want to look at how to not handle their franchise, they need to just look across the parking lot at McAfee Coliseum and the Oakland Raiders. For everything that the Raiders are, the Warriors don't need to be.

But this isn't the first episode of false injury-reporting the Bay Area has seen. Remember Jeff Kent and his injured wrist a few years back? Didn't hurt it in the batting cage, he was actually washing his truck? Well, that's what he said. It was really because he smashed it while cruising on his motorcycle.

Kent violated his contract, but nothing was done. His punishment was sitting on the sidelines while his team played. Which, for every athlete, should be hard enough to swallow.

So while Ellis could've done worse, maybe even broken his neck on the damn moped, people won't be happy with whatever Mullin and the Warriors do. If they don't punish him, people will say Ellis controls the franchise. If they do, fans will blame Mullin if the Warriors don't make the playoffs.

There is one thing that is known. Ellis won't be present at Friday's media day in Oakland—maybe the smartest decision he has made since signing his $66 million contract.